Egg Curry

This Egg Curry Recipe is reminiscent of the delicious egg curries that
you can find in one of the small cafes in the streets of Madras
(Chennai). Eggs are very high in protein and are quite versatile. Many
vegetarians will also eat eggs even though they do not eat meat. This
egg curry features a sauce which is typical of the masalas in South
India. It uses tamarind, coconut, curry leaves and other savory spices.

Boil
the eggs until they are fully cooked, usually about 12 minutes.
Peel the eggs and set aside.

If you have tamarind pressed together, soak it in 1/2 cup warm water
and set aside.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or fry pan. When the oil becomes hot
(the oil will start to shimmer, also before it smokes) add the cinnamon
stick, curry leaves, fenugreek, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and urad dal.
Fry this until the urad dal turns a nice golden brown. Add the onion
and chili (if you like it hot!). Fry for 2-3 minutes or until the
onions are clear. Reduce the heat and add the garlic and ginger. Fry
another 1-2 minutes or until the garlic becomes very fragrant and add
the tomato. If you are using the shredded coconut, add it with water.
If you use coconut milk, you may omit the water, unless you like a
thinner sauce. Add the Tomato sauce, tamarind paste and turmeric and
season with salt and pepper. Let this come to a boil and reduce the
heat and simmer until the sauce is thickened. Add the eggs and simmer
for at least 5 more minutes so that the eggs absorb the flavor.

Serve with rice and a bread such as chapatti or poori. Enjoy!

Note:
The Urad Dal for this egg curry can be found in specialty stores. It is
the split, white lentil without the black shell. With the shell it is
known as black gram dal. This is often fried with mustard seed in oil
at the beginning of making a sauce.

Coconut can be found in many different ways. In South India, it would
primarily be shaved straight from the coconut shell. In stores, it can
be found fresh shaved, in coconut milk or dessicated or dried. If you
use the dessicated coconut for this egg curry, put it in some water or
milk, bring to a boil, remove from the heat and set aside. This will
extract the rich flavor from the coconut.

The ingredients for this egg curry can often be found locally at an
Indian store, or can be found here
online.